I’m in highschool, I care, I get involved!

Brief description of the project

By taking part in the YouthBank program, highschool students from Sibiu learn through practical experience how to organize fundraising events and activities and how to distribute the amounts collected to project ideas of their colleagues in highschools. Preparing the YouthBank team, of approximately 15 students each year, includes participating in trainings on subjects like the introduction in the YouthBank principles, fundraising, grant making, communication and reporting, and attending the program’s national camp. By taking part in the half marathon in 2014 Sibiu we wish to mobilize the amount necessary for organizing the trainings and for participating in the summer camp for 15 highschool students.

YouthBank Sibiu – Program coordinated by the Sibiu Community Foundation

The Sibiu Community Foundation runs the YouthBank program for highschool students, since 2012. Each edition of the program will be conducted during the school year. Every year, a team of highschool students, selected by taking into account their ability of teamwork, leadership and community involvement desire, goes through a series of trainings to learn how to raise a fund, organize fundraising events and actions and how to direct these funds to projects that impact the community. Approximately 15 high school students have three months to raise a fund to provide funding for projects that are proposed by their colleagues in highschools, projects that they select and monitorize troughout implementation.

In the first edition, the YouthBank team managed to raise a fund of 11.600 RON which has funded eight projects that have involved 44 volunteers from Sibiu and had 3,000 direct and indirect beneficiaries. Among the projects funded are: a short film competition for highschool students – “48 for Teens”-, the “Books for Culture Festival”, the Bike Path “Emil Cioran” extension. Details of all projects that were implemented from the YouthBank fund last year can be found at http://sibiu.youthbank.ro/index.php/finantare-youthbank/proiecte-finantate-yb-2013/2013.

This year, the YouthBank fund is completed by the contribution of the language center ProLanguage and has a value of 16,000 lei of which highschool projects that will be conducted during March 31-June 2, 2014 will be funded. In order to raise the fund this year’s team of 17 highschool students, organized activities and fundraising events: the sale of greeting cards, face painting and Christmas decorations at the mall, an auction of experiences, direct requests from sponsors.

The problem the project solves

YouthBank addresses the need to provide highschool students with the practical experience to help them develop skills needed in everyday life: communication, planning, resource mobilization, negotiation, decision making, monitoring and evaluation. Giving them the confidence they need, involving them in concrete practical situations, the program addresses the need to have responsible highschool students, able to make decisions and take action to achieve a goal. Young people involved in the program and those who implement projects funded by YB, will be more prepared to face certain requirements at their future jobs and to identify needs and find solutions for the communities to which they belong. After attending the program, highschool students will be familiar with the stages of organizing an event, fundraising mechanisms, grant making, evaluation and monitoring of a project, different ways to approach and communicate with potential donors.

Beneficiaries

The target group of the program is the highschool students in the city of Sibiu. The direct beneficiaries of the program are the approximately 15 YouthBank Sibiu team members each year (10 students in 2012-2013, 17 students in 2013- 2014) and highschool students involved in the project teams that receive funding from the YouthBank fund (about 35 students). YB’s indirect beneficiaries are those who benefit from the projects implemented by the highschool students (over 3,000 beneficiaries in 2012-2013), volunteers involved in these projects and organizations that support the teams. A group benefiting from the skills that young people develop through participation in YB is the future employers that will have a basis for selecting better prepared staff to meet the demands of jobs.

Objectives

The main objective of the project for the Half Marathon is the organization of the trainings by the Sibiu Community Foundation (introduction to the principles YouthBank, fundraising, grant making, reporting and communication), the team building for the YouthBank Sibiu 2014-2015 team and the participation in the summer camp at the end of the 2014-2015 edition.

Preparing the highschool students in the 2014-2015 edition for fundraising, organizing the funding contest, grant making and monitoring the projects implemented with funding YB.

Evaluation of the program’s 2014-2015 edition, along with members of other teams in the country, in the national camp at the end of the YB year.

The changes the project brings to the community

YouthBank helps educate young people who are put in the situation to make decisions, find solutions and act, become more responsible and able to cope with demands of the contemporary society. Both YB team members and those who are part of the teams for the funded projects bring about changes in the communities they belong to, are prepared to respond in a responsible and active manner in various situations of everyday life: planning activities, making a budget, finding a location for the event, approach sponsors, promote an event, presenting the program in different contexts (press conferences, public events, radio or television), communication with partners, sponsors and donors, project evaluation, project monitoring, self-evaluation. The benefits that the projects implemented from the YB fund bring to the community, cover several areas: from the learning process that the highschool students that implement the projects and the volunteers involved in the project go through to the changes made ​​by the successful completion of projects.

By participating in the trainings that take place throughout the year, students involved in the program become familiar with the concepts and working methods that help them work as a team in order to achieve their goals within the program: attracting an annual fund and grant making. The skills acquired through the participation in the YB trainings and activities (leadership, communication, planning, resource mobilization, negotiation, decision making, monitoring and evaluation) gives young people an extra chance in the labor market and in their relationship with prospective employers. The fact that young people are faced with evaluating other sudents’ projects and evaluate themselves empowers them and gives them a different perspective on the environment they come from and their position within it. In addition , by participating in the program and having contact with partners, sponsors and donors, highschool students understand what responsible philanthropic behavior is, in the future they have the potential to become donors themselves and supporters of community projects.

By taking part in the national camp, the Sibiu YB team members have the opportunity to share their experience about program-specific activities with other young people. The camp is an opportunity to learn, to work in mixed teams made ​​up of young people from different cities and to evaluate a year’s work.

Fundraising objective

5.250 RON to cover the costs of organizing the trainings and for the participation in national camp for 15 highschool students in the 2014-2015 YB edition. The camp takes place over five days, in partnership with the County Direction of Sport and Youth (from the county where the camp is held).

Total budget

The budget for the 15 highschool students participating in the trainings conducted under the YB and in the national camp:
Food (trainings): 20 RON/person x 15 persons x 8 days = 2.400 RON
Consumables (flipchart, markers, A4, toner, pens, supplies for team-building, etc..): 600 RON
Transport to the national camp: 50 RON/person x 15 people = 750 RON
Accommodation and food at the national camp (partnership with DJST partially supported from the YB national budget): 100 RON/person x 15 people = 1.500 RON
Total budget: 5.250 RON